"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, narrow-mindedness, all foes of real understanding. Likewise, tolerance, or broad wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime" – Mark Twain

Tag Archives: snapshots of laos

The lovely and mysterious Nam Ou River moves through Northern Laos slowly. This photo overlooks the river from the Nong Khiaw bridge in the small town of the same name. The sky was becoming cloudy and misty–a wonderful break from the smoke of Luang Prabang. We stayed here one night before venturing further north upriver to Muang Ngoi.

We enjoyed a cold drink from this village “cafe” while overlooking quiet rice paddies, misty moutaintops, and the sound of village life in the background. Ban Na village, Muang Ngoi.

Beerlao, produced just a few kilometers away from this cafe in Vientiene, Laos, it is “world famous” and the only beer to drink if you are in Laos. Laotions are very proud of their highly respected brew, apparently named by Time magazine to be Asia’s best local beer. It is crisp but smooth and for a buck, you cannot go wrong!

Laos’ capitol city of Vientiene may not have the hottest nightlife, but if you’re willing to show your stuff in front of the locals, we had a blast at a few late night rounds of bowling. Best of all was the old Brunswick 2000 equipment, which took us both back to our 1980’s childhoods.

Brightly colored ribbons are wrapped around trees, this one here in Vientiene, as a Buddhist offering to the spirits believed to be residing within.

We enjoyed an afternoon getting out of town to visit the Lao Textile Museum. The museum exhibited weaving styles, dying, traditional clothing in a quiet and gorgeous gardened setting. They also offered classes and workshops. Here the caretaker is showing us how fabric dye is made. The top left corner is the indigo plant, grown on the grounds, and dozens of clay urns were holding dye, which was fermenting over a period of several weeks. The dye appeared green until mixed, then becoming a deep bright blue.